Obvious
by Always Hopeful
Summary: COMPLETE! ONESHOT! Songfic to Christina Aguilara's, Obvious. Over a biweekly chess match, Albus manages to get Minerva to tell him how she feels for him.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything of the sort. I wish I did, but I do not. The characters are J.K. Rowling's and the song is Christina Aguilera's. Le Sigh.**

**A/N: I know, I am so incredibly bad. I should be working on my stories, but I can't think of anything for my stories. I mean, I just can't. I tried to work on "Meet the Family", but nothing came to me. But don't worry. I'll try to work on it again soon. Sorry. So I can only hope that you will be happy with this for a while. Read long and prosper.**

**Obvious…**

_Can you hear it in my voice?_

_Was it something I let slip?_

_Does the whole world know?_

_Isn't it obvious? _

"Checkmate, Albus." Minerva looked over at Albus over their chessboard and smiled. He leaned back and smiled despite his defeat.

"Yes, my dear, I fear you have won once again." He laughed as he made a mark in the air with his forefinger. Minerva looked at the red dashes which hovered above the chessboard. The left side indicated Albus' wins while the one on the right indicated the games she had earned. So far she was leading five to two. "Oh, you are too good at this, Tabby." She chuckled.

"I am too good for chess?" she asked, half laughing as she helped him reset the board. He chuckled.

"No, I meant you are too good to play with me," he said. "I fear that the student has far surpassed the teacher. It is time you found an opponent who might actually make you think." Minerva blushed as she rested back into her seat and Albus banished the chess set.

"Oh, Albus, I could never surpass you. And you always make me think. Sometimes I think so much around you I think I might go mad."

"I am sorry, my dear," he replied as he, too, rested back in his seat. With another wave of his hand, tea appeared upon the table in between them, along with some ginger newts for her and some sherbet lemons for himself. "I will try and not make you think as much from now on." Minerva laughed. Music to his ears.

"I don't mind, Albus. I enjoy our discussions and our games. They keep me fresh and alive." There was, however, one game she wished she didn't have to play. "Guess-who-loves-the-headmaster-but-is-too-chicken-to-tell-him" was one game she resented playing, and yet one she must continue to play for who knew how long?

"I am glad of that, my dear," he said. "I would hate it if our bi-weekly chess games were to stop because I tired you out." Minerva blushed as she looked into his eyes. Oh, those twinkling eyes of his made her tired heart beat faster and faster with every second.

"I'm sure we could find some other way to tire ourselves out aside from talking and chess." The moment those words left her lips, she began to blush furiously. That came out completely the wrong way and she was sure he had noticed. Hopefully he would associate her blush with the heat from the fire. That twinkle in his eyes didn't help anything.

"I'm sure we could, my dear," he said. He had seen the blush on her cheeks, and he had the distinct feeling that it wasn't due to the fire. At least, he _hoped_ it hadn't been all the fire's fault. "What would you suggest, my dear?" Minerva cleared her throat as she looked down at her cup of tea and tried to think of something… and quick.

"Well, urm… I suppose we could always, uh…" She cleared her throat again as she looked into the fireplace. "Well, we could always talk; just not about everything we normally talk about. Don't get me wrong, I love talking of Transfiguration, science, and philosophy. But perhaps we can talk of music and beauty and art every now and again."

"I would like that," smiled Albus. It was only then that Minerva looked at him again. He smiled at her and she couldn't help the small smile spreading across her lips as well. Why was it that every time she was around him something happened to her voice? She did not know. She cleared her throat, realizing that she was beginning to let her mind wonder.

"I suppose I should go to my rooms. I'm sure you have so many things you need to get done. I've taken up enough of your time." She got up, but so did Albus.

"No, you don't have to go, Tabby," he said. "I enjoy your company." He was not ready to let her go. He had felt something earlier when she had tried to think of other things they could do besides playing chess or discussing Transfiguration. She had looked so beautiful when she had blushed. Well, he always thought she looked beautiful, but even more so when she blushed.

"No, no, it's getting late," she said. It was if he had sensed her thoughts when he asked her to stay. She really did want to stay, but she knew it wouldn't be appropriate.

"Late? Minerva, it is only half past nine; not late at all." Minerva looked at the clock on the mantle. He was right. She looked down when she felt his big hand encircle her small wrist. "Please, stay with me." It was a simple request, and as she looked into his eyes, she wasn't so sure she could refuse him.

"Are you sure you want me to, Albus?" she asked, her voice unsteady. Right now, she felt as though the whole world knew her secret. Albus smiled as he turned her around to him and ever so slowly placed his right hand on her hip.

"I don't want anything else, Minerva," he said, smiling. Minerva smiled in spite of herself. Without another thought, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him lightly on the lips.

_I'm the one who's in control_

_Now I'm acting like a fool_

_Do my feelings show?_

_Is my face aglow?_

_Isn't it obvious?_

Oh dear. What had she done? Before Albus could give into the kiss, she pulled back and turned. She wanted to run away from everything; the night, the fire, the kiss… from _him._ How could she have lost control that way? She had always been in control of her emotions, and now, because of a single moment's worth of insanity, she had destroyed the one constant in her life. She was acting like a fool and she knew it. How could she let her feelings show like that? As if her feelings for her boss weren't obvious enough, she had to go and blow everything. At least before the bloody kiss she could always pretend that she wasn't in love with him. But now, she didn't know if she could ever face him again.

As she reached for the door, it closed on her and she could hear the lock click. Her hand stopped, frozen an inch from the knob. She closed her eyes as she fought against her own tears.

"Albus please let me go." Her voice was not more than a whisper, and yet he could hear the pain in it.

"No, Minerva," he whispered back. "Not until I know why you kissed me." Minerva wiped away an unwanted tear and sniffed. She refused to turn back and look at him. She couldn't stand the pain that she knew would come from his rejection.

"I think it would be quite obvious as to what that kiss meant," she said, her voice shaking. "I just don't know why you must keep me here and torture me so when you clearly do not share my feelings." There was silence from his end and she could feel her heart breaking with each passing second. The next thing she knew, she could feel him behind her. No, he was not touching her, but she felt the same feeling she always felt whenever he was within close proximity. Her stomach was so full of butterflies she feared she would take flight any moment. Her heart began to beat and she felt as though it were beating in her throat.

"Minerva, look at me, please," he pleaded. When she refused, he grabbed her right hand and gently tugged until she was now at least facing him, even if she did keep her face bent downward. He placed a hand underneath her chin and raised her face until she was forced to look at him. "What did that kiss mean to you?"

_That I don't know what_

_I'm doing anymore_

_I'm feeling like a little girl_

_Caught up in emotions_

_I'm out of control_

_Isn't it obvious?_

Her bottom lip quivered as she made to answer.

"It means that I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I'm feeling like a little girl, caught up in emotions I've had for so long and yet I can barely understand. My emotions are out of control."

"And what feelings are those, Minerva?" Albus asked rather huskily. When had he acquired the new timber to his voice? She did not know. His face was a mere two or three inches away from hers, and she could smell a light scent of lemon on his breath. She mentally laughed at the thought of lemons on his breath. It was just like Albus.

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked. Albus smiled slightly, never taking his eyes off hers.

"I need to hear you say those words, Minerva," he whispered. It wasn't until she felt the hard wood against her back that Minerva realized she had been backed against the doorway, Albus looming barely an inch from her in every spot. Normally, she hated the feeling of being trapped. It went against everything she wanted. But for some reason, when Albus was the one doing the trapping, she didn't mind so much.

"Why?" she asked. The word came out of her mouth so quietly it sounded weak; another thing she hated. She was not weak. She was Minerva McGonagall and proud of it. No one backed her into a corner or made her feel weak. And yet, here he was, her friend, boss, and secret love, making her sound as though she were a child again.

"Because I need to know for sure that you feel the same about me that I do about you," he replied. She could feel his breath upon her face.

_Do you see my hands, they tremble_

_Wonder why I can't_

_Look you in the eyes_

_Don't know how long_

_I can keep this inside_

_Isn't it obvious?_

Minerva brought her hands up rather shakily to his face. She still couldn't bring herself to look him squarely in the eye, so she looked at everything else; his forehead, his nose, his cheeks… and finally, his lips. She couldn't keep this secret hidden any long; especially not when he was so close to her.

"I love you, Albus," she said. "I love you more than I've ever love any man before. I'm sorry, I've tried to keep it a secret, but with you here, so close to me, I'm afraid-," She began to cry slightly. Albus stopped her from dropping her face, but he could not stop her from closing her eyes.

"Ssshh," he whispered soothingly as he held her chin with one hand and wiped her cheek with the other hand. "Don't cry, my love." Minerva opened her eyes, frowned, and finally looked him square in the eyes.

"Love?" she asked. He chuckled. Great, now he was laughing at her.

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked, repeating her earlier question. "I love you, Minerva McGonagall." He brought his lips closer until they were centimeters apart. "And I always shall." With that, he kissed her full on the mouth. It took a few seconds for her to recover, but when she did, she responded with full force, causing the kiss to grow passionate.

_Oh, I don't know what_

_I'm doing anymore_

_I'm feeling like a little girl_

_Caught up in emotions_

_I'm out of control_

_Isn't it obvious?_

No, she did not know what she was doing anymore. All her life, Minerva McGonagall had had control over her life and her actions. But now, she was with Albus Dumbledore and she no longer had control over her emotions, or even her own thoughts. Her mind was quickly whirling out of control, and she was falling pray to them faster and faster until she could barely remember how to keep from falling to the floor.

_Suddenly these emotions are_

_In control of my heart_

_Can you see it in my eyes?_

_Every glance, every smile_

_Must give me away_

_And I feel so much I can't hide_

Her emotions were running rampant through her body, taking complete control of, not only her mind, but her heart as well. When they finally pulled back, her voice failed her and she tried to convey with her eyes what she truly felt for him. Luckily for her it seemed to work as he smiled.

"You know, I should have known all along how you felt for me," he whispered as he leaned his forehead against hers. "Looking back, it all seems rather obvious. The glances, the smiles… They were always somehow different with me than they were with others. I do not know why I could see it in others and yet not in you." Minerva laughed.

"I've often wondered that myself, Albus," she replied. "Every smile and every glance must have given me away. And now I'm so glad I do not have to hide it from you anymore." He smiled as he traced kisses down her cheek to her jaw line and then finally to her neck.

"Never again should you keep anything from me," he breathed. He silently cursed her high collared robes. They didn't offer much lenience as far as places for him to leave any marks or anything on her. He said as much to her between kisses and she laughed.

"Well, look at it this way," she said in a breathy tone. "At least now they'll serve a purpose."

"And what might that be, my dear?" asked Albus as he kissed his way back up her jaw line and then to the underside of her chin.

"Now my high collared robes will serve to cover any marks you give me from the prying eyes or teenaged students." He laughed as he pulled up and looked at her.

"So you are telling me you _want_ me to mark you?" he asked. He was slightly shocked, and yet thrilled at the prospect. She then bat her eyes coyly at him. 'I've never seen her do _that_ before," he thought amusedly.

"Unless you are not Gryffindor enough to," she teased. He smirked as he pressed his entire body against hers and chuckled. He saw the shock on her face when she felt a rather firm portion of his anatomy pressed against her.

"I'll show you who's not 'Gryffindor enough', Minerva," he chuckled. And with one quick swoop, he picked her off her feet and carried her to his bedroom.

_And I don't know what_

_I'm doing anymore_

_I'm feeling like a little girl_

_Caught up in emotions_

_I'm out of control (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_Isn't it obvious?_

No, Minerva may not have known that that chess game would have changed her life. She may not have known what she was doing and there were times when she felt like a little girl and had allowed her emotions to take control over her. And that might have been the first time she was completely out of control over what she did.

But she was also incredibly brave, which was the reason why she had been sorted into Gryffindor instead of Ravenclaw. She had not known why at first, but then she would have moments such as these; moments when her courage would almost fail her and yet, somehow, come back with a vengeance. That night made it painfully obvious to the both of them that they could not live in fear. You never know when your last day is, and you never know what your journey might bring you in the end.

No, one cannot live in fear all one's life…

Isn't it obvious?

**A/N2: Aieesh. This took me about an hour and a half to write. I stayed up till 11:45 to finish it and tried to post it last night but for some reason wouldn't let me. Sorry. I hope you guys think it was worth it. Read long and prosper. Always Hopeful**


End file.
